Is Your Doctor a Liar? Here are 50 Big Fat Lies Doctors Tell

Dr Vernon Coleman MB ChB DSc FRSA





In 1975, I wrote a book called The Medicine Men. It was the first book to draw attention to the oh-so-friendly relationship between the medical profession and the drug industry.

In 1977, I wrote a book called Paper Doctors in which I explained how and why researchers waste money and effort on doing research (and writing scientific papers) which are of little or no value.

Those two books began a small revolution and spawned scores of copy-cat books.

Suddenly it was acceptable to criticise doctors, scientists and drug companies.

But the medical establishment never forgave me for shining light on some of the profession’s most corrupt practices.

And with drug company money backing them, doctors have done everything possible to suppress my books and to ensure that people cannot hear my warnings or follow my advice. (It is important to remember that drug companies could not do ‘bad’ things without the support of doctors.)

Anyone who upsets the establishment must be portrayed as a dangerous and ill-informed lunatic and the lobbyists do that with great enthusiasm, aided and abetted by quangos, committees and lobby groups which exist to defend the establishment’s right to rule without question, opposition or discussion.

As a result of those early books I have been threatened, spied upon and burgled. I have been lied about and banned in many different but effective ways. I’ve been threatened with legal action and my books have been suppressed. My website has been hacked and taken down more times than I can remember.

But I’m still here.

Now here are 50 big fat lies which doctors commonly tell.

If you want to find more information about these lies (and the truth) you will find everything you need to know in books such as Coleman’s Laws, How to Stop Your Doctor Killing You, Anyone who tells you Vaccines are safe and effective is lying, Power over Cancer and Doctors Kill More People than Cancer. All these are available as ebooks on Amazon.

Lie no 1: It is important to reduce cholesterol levels (the truth is that evidence suggests that reducing cholesterol levels can be dangerous – and make no difference to a patient’s health)

Lie no 2: Statins are safe (the truth is that there are horrendous side effects with these drugs – which are commonly prescribed for healthy individuals)

Lie no 3: Vaccines are safe (the truth is that there is no evidence proving that vaccines are safe – but there is plenty of evidence showing that they can be dangerous)

Lie no 4: Vaccines are effective (the truth is that there is no evidence proving that vaccines are effective – but there is plenty of evidence showing that they are often not effective)

Lie no 5: Prostate screening is valuable (the truth is that the standard prostate screening test is useless and does more harm than good)

Lie no 6: High blood pressure cannot be cured (the truth is that thousands of patients who have dealt with the problem which has caused their high blood pressure have been cured – stress and overweight are common causes of high blood pressure)

Lie no 7: You can’t catch flu from the flu vaccine (the truth is that the nasal flu vaccine is attenuated but it can help spread the flu)

Lie no 8: Breast screening is safe and effective (the truth is that X-ray screening programmes actually cause cancer of the breast)

Lie no 9: Vegetarian diets are dangerous (the truth is that research shows that a vegetarian diet is by far the healthiest human diet)

Lie no 10: Hospital infections are under control (the truth is that, as a result of poor hygiene, killer infections caught in hospital are totally out of control and are now spreading into the community)

Lie no 11: Aspirin is too dangerous to use (the truth is that aspirin taken in soluble form is probably the safest effective painkiller available over the counter)

Lie no 12: Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are the same thing (the truth is that only just over half of patients with dementia have Alzheimer’s disease)

Lie no 13: Tests and investigations are important but harmless (the truth is that routine investigations help doctors make a diagnosis in only 1 in 100 patients – and many tests are so hazardous that patients can be killed)

Lie no 14: Chemotherapy is the best way to treat cancer (the truth is that chemotherapy has been shown to do more harm than good)

Lie no 15: Depression can be safely and effectively treated with drugs (the truth is that most cases of depression cannot be helped with drugs)

Lie no 16: Drug side effects are uncommon (the truth is that drug side effects are very common and dangerous side effects are frequent)

Lie no 17: Drugs are tested on thousands of guinea-pig patients before being prescribed (the truth is that drugs are often tested on very few patients before being made available to GPs for mass prescribing – side effects then only appear months or years later)

Lie no 18: Dementia cannot be cured (the truth is that many cases of dementia can be cured – for example, thousands of dementia patients have a condition called normal pressure hydrocephalus which can be cured with a small operation – but GPs and hospital doctors admit they don’t bother to test for this because ‘old people aren’t worth the trouble’)

Lie no 19: Experiments on animals help doctors find new cures (the truth is that evidence shows clearly that animal experiments are entirely worthless but that they help drug companies put useless and dangerous drugs onto the market)

Lie no 20: Radiotherapy is safe and effective (the truth is that it is often dangerous and ineffective)

Lie no 21: Tobacco is the biggest cause of cancer (the truth is that the biggest cause of cancer in humans is meat – but the meat industry is powerful and has suppressed the truth very effectively)

Lie no 22: Medical screening is worthwhile (the truth is that evidence shows that medical screening is wonderful for doctors and screening clinics but not very good for patients)

Lie no 23: Drugs prescribed for children have been properly tested (the truth is that most of the drugs given to babies and children have never been tested on babies or on children but have only ever been tested on adults)

Lie no 24: Meat is essential for good health (the truth is that there is absolutely no evidence for this claim – meat contains nothing that cannot be obtained in healthier foods)

Lie no 25: Psychiatry is a science (the truth is that psychiatry is a pseudo-science, more akin to black magic than anything else)

Lie no 26: Heart surgery is the only way to deal with heart disease (the truth is that many patients with serious heart disease can be cured by losing weight, adopting a vegetarian diet and controlling their exposure to stress)

Lie no 27: Antibiotic resistance is caused by patients not completing the course of drugs they have been prescribed (the truth is that antibiotic resistance is partly a result of wild and careless overprescribing by doctors and partly a result of the fact that farmers frequently give antibiotics to their animals)

Lie no 28: Hormone replacement therapy is a safe and effective way of dealing with the menopause (the truth is that it is dangerous and usually quite unnecessary)

Lie no 29: Osteoporosis occurs only in menopausal women (the truth is that osteoporosis occurs in adult men and women of all ages)

Lie no 30: Thanks to doctors and drug companies, we are all living longer than ever before (the truth is, life expectancy has hardly changed for adults – it is the reduction in infant mortality rates, resulting from better sanitation and drinking water, that has made the difference in average life expectation)

Lie no 31: Cow’s milk is good for children (the truth is that it causes allergy problems such as eczema, is very unhealthy and should be avoided)

Lie no 32: Women naturally live longer than men (the truth is that they don’t; now that women are drinking and smoking as much as men, and living stressful lives, male and female life expectancy are equalising.)

Lie no 33: Asthma is a common disease (the truth is that it is commonly diagnosed but it isn’t particularly common – only around one in ten of the people diagnosed as having asthma actually has the condition)

Lie no 34: Neurosurgery can help patients with a variety of psychiatric problems (the truth is that in these circumstances brain surgery is about as much use as being run over by a bus)

Lie no 35: Women who have a genetic susceptibility to breast cancer should have their breasts removed (the truth is that surgery is brutal and unnecessary; women who have a genetic susceptibility to breast cancer should simply adapt their lifestyle – and give up eating meat – to normalise the risk)

Lie no 36: Tamoxifen is a safe drug which will prevent breast cancer (the truth is that tamoxifen causes cancer of the uterus – so it might prevent one cancer but cause another)

Lie no 37: Drugs and surgery are the only two ways to deal with illness (the truth is that in nine out of ten illnesses, the body will heal itself)

Lie no 38: X-rays are harmless (the truth is that they aren’t – X-rays are a major cause of cancer)

Lie no 39: As a result of vaccine programmes and antibiotics, infectious disease are under control (the truth is that infectious diseases are coming back with a vengeance; vaccine programmes have failed miserably and many bugs are now immune to antibiotics)

Lie no 40: Repeat prescribing is a safe way to supply patients with essential drugs (the truth is that repeat prescribing saves doctors time and money but helps boost drug company profits at the expense of patient safety – thousands of patients regularly take potentially damaging drugs which they don’t need)

Lie no 41: Psychotherapy is a powerful way of dealing with mental health problems (the truth is that chatting to a hairdresser or a barman or, even better, a friend who cares probably does more good than talking to a psychotherapist)

Lie no 42: Eczema and dermatitis always need to be treated with powerful creams and ointments (the truth is that most skin conditions of this type are caused by some sort of allergy problem – and the best way to cure them is to remove the cause of the allergy)

Lie no 43: Medicines bought over the counter are always safe (the truth is that the medicines sold in pharmacies can cause serious side effects and can mask symptoms and signs which indicate serious illness)

Lie no 44: Maturity onset (type II) diabetes always needs treatment with drugs (the truth is that type II diabetes can best be treated by diet – without any drugs at all)

Lie no 45: Gallstones always need surgery (the truth is that many patients with gallstones need no treatment at all – except cutting down on their consumption of fatty foods)

Lie no 46: Tap water is just as good for as bottled water (the truth is that much tap water contains drug residues which can cause serious and permanent health problems)

Lie no 47: Doctors can be trusted to keep secrets (the truth is that doctors are no longer allowed to respect patient confidentiality)

Lie no 48: Patients who ask too many questions are likely to be unpopular with doctors (the truth is that patients who take an active interest in their own health, and who regularly ask questions, are more likely to survive than patients who merely allow themselves to be treated as objects)

Lie no 49: Doctors, when consulted, can be trusted to give you all the options (the truth is that surgeons tend to operate and physicians tend to prescribe drugs – it’s what they do.

Lie no 50: Your doctor can always be trusted to give you good, impartial advice (the truth is that these doctors do what they are told to do by their government and by drug companies – very few bother to do their own critical reading or research)

All this may sound a little depressing.

But there is an answer: learn to take control of your own body and your own health. When you are well, take the time and the effort to learn how your body works and what signs and symptoms to look out for. And if you are unfortunate enough to fall ill, then spend time doing your own research into your illness. Within a surprisingly short time, you will probably know more about your illness than your doctor!

If you want to find more information about these 50 lies (and the truths) you will find everything you need to know in books such as Coleman’s Laws, How to Stop Your Doctor Killing You, Anyone who tells you Vaccines are safe and effective is lying, Power over Cancer and Doctors Kill More People than Cancer. All these are available as ebooks on Amazon and these lies are all taken from these and my other medical books.

Copyright Vernon Coleman

There are hundreds of free articles on www.vernoncoleman.com and www.vernoncoleman.co.uk
For a biography please see www.vernoncoleman.org or www.vernoncoleman.net
And there are over 60 books by Vernon Coleman available as ebooks on Amazon.
I’m afraid, however, that you have to pay for those. (But not a lot.)

Home